By Kate Kellogg
Although I cannot walk or run,
I still believe in having fun.
While I am sitting in this chair,
My mind goes racing everywhere.
So stop and smile and talk with me,
And you will very quickly see
That I enjoy jokes, games and toys,
And meeting other girls and boys.

Instructions

Draw or glue a picture of yourself in the empty square, and write your name under it.

Fold along the dotted lines (see illustration). Read the scripture under each prophet’s picture.

Punch holes where indicated, and thread a piece of string through the holes as shown in the illustration. Tie a knot on the bottom end of the string, and make a loop at the top.

Hang up your mobile to remind you of what the Savior tells the prophets to tell you.

By Diane S. Nichols

“For his word ye shall receive, as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith” (D&C 21:5).

The Prophet Speaks for Heavenly Father

Imagine that your mom asks you to tell your brothers and sisters to come to dinner. You are to speak for your mom, delivering a message for her to your family. Will they listen?

Father in Heaven has chosen certain men to speak for Him. These men are called prophets. They teach us what He wants us to know. Will we listen?

The scriptures tell us about prophets Father in Heaven called to speak for Him. Noah warned the people to repent or a terrible flood would cover the earth. Noah’s family listened, and they were saved from the flood (see Gen. 6–8; 2 Pet. 2:5).

Lehi was shown that Jesus Christ would be the Savior of the world. Lehi’s son Nephi prayed to know if his father’s words were true. The Lord visited Nephi, and Nephi believed all his father’s words. Later, Nephi, like his father, spoke for the Lord (see 1 Ne. 1:18–19; 1 Ne. 2:16–18).

Joseph Smith went into the woods to pray. Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ appeared and gave him instructions that opened the way for the Restoration of the gospel (see JS—H 1:11–20).

We have a living prophet today, Gordon B. Hinckley. He is the President of the Church. He was chosen by God and called through proper priesthood authority. President Hinckley testifies that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. All the prophets testify of Jesus Christ and teach us what He wants us to do (see Jacob 7:11;). D&C 21:1, 4–5

When we pray to Heavenly Father we can know that the prophet’s words are true. When we hear the prophet, we will know that he speaks to us for the Savior. And, yes, we will listen.

Help Eli find his way through his house so he can do nice things for his mom and brother Asher to show he is sorry. Eli needs to go past Asher’s toy box, the washcloths, and the piano. Be careful to make sure that Eli does not run into any of the messy piles of laundry as he makes his way through the house.

Showing Sorry

1. Eli ran through the living room, jumping over piles of laundry on the floor as his baby brother, Asher, watched.

Woo-hoo!

Be careful not to land on the laundry.

2. Eli’s foot knocked over a stack of washcloths. Asher laughed as the washcloths flew all over. Eli laughed too. They both laughed as he jumped from one stack of laundry to the next and kicked them over.

3. Mom walked back into the room. Eli stopped in the middle of a kick and fell down on Asher. Asher started to cry.

Oh, Eli!

Sorry, Asher. Sorry, Mom.

4. Thank you for saying sorry, but what are you going to do to fix this problem?

I don’t know. Can I go play with my toys?

5. Eli, when we do something that hurts someone and we say sorry, there is something else we need to do.

What?

We need to show we are sorry by making things better.

6. Eli wanted to show he was sorry. He ran to Asher’s toy box, grabbed a stuffed cheetah, and waved it in front of Asher’s face. Then he did a silly dance. Asher laughed.

And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters (Mosiah 5:7).

Do you know what a covenant in the Church is? It is a sacred promise, an
agreement between Heavenly Father and His children. Since the time of Adam and
Eve, Father in Heaven has made covenants with His children to help us live
righteously and be worthy to live with Him again.

In the scriptures, we learn about many people who made covenants with the
Lord. When the people of Alma gathered at the waters of Mormon, he invited them
to be baptized, to make a covenant (see Mosiah 18:8–13). The people were so happy that they clapped their hands with joy. They wanted to show their love for Heavenly Father, and their desire to keep His commandments, by being baptized.

Alma taught his people what they must do to keep and honor their baptismal
covenant. He said that they must be willing to be called God’s people and to
obey His commandments. He told them that they should help one another and
comfort one another. They were to be “witnesses of God” (Mosiah
18:9). That means that they would tell others about Heavenly Father and about how much He loves each of His children. If they did these things, the Lord would bless them with His Spirit. Alma’s people learned that Heavenly Father loves us and wants us to make a sacred covenant with Him.

We begin our journey back to Him by making a covenant and being baptized.
When Jesus was baptized, He made a covenant that He would be obedient to
Heavenly Father’s commandments (see 2 Ne. 31:5–8). When you are baptized, you make that same covenant to serve Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Then, when you are confirmed a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you covenant to take His name upon you, to always remember Him, and to keep His commandments. Just like the people of Alma, you promise to be a witness of the Savior—to tell others about, or testify of, Him. When you keep your part of the baptismal covenant, you will always have His Spirit to be with you. That is God’s promise to you.

Instructions

To make a mobile to help you remember your baptismal covenant, mount page 13
on heavy paper, then color and cut out the figures. Using string or yarn, attach
each figure to a clothes hanger or decorative hook, and display the mobile where
you can see it each day.

(Illustrated by Phyllis Luch.)

When I Am Baptized, I Make a Sacred CovenantAnd now, because of the
covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons,
and his daughters (Mosiah 5:7).
I become a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints.
I am baptized by immersion.
I receive the gift of the Holy
Ghost.
I promise to testify of Jesus Christ.
I promise to serve
others.
I promise to serve God and keep His commandments.

Karen Lofgreen, “Sharing Time: I Believe in Being Obedient,” Friend, May 1995, 42

(Information about and quotations by President Hunter are from Howard W. Hunter by Eleanor Knowles, pages 25–41.)

By the obedience of one [man] shall many be made righteous (Rom. 5:19).

Being obedient means being willing to make right choices. When you are obedient, you are blessed. Can you remember a time when you were blessed because you obeyed a commandment, a law, or your parents?

President Howard W. Hunter knew that it was important to obey his parents. He also learned that it is important to obey Heavenly Father’s commandments. He kept a journal, in which he told about things that happened in his early life and about the lessons he learned then.

For example, in those days, you could buy fruits and vegetables only at the time they were harvested in your area. Each spring he helped plant a family garden. During the summer and fall, he picked the fruits and vegetables and helped his mother preserve, or save, them for eating during months when they weren’t otherwise available.

His mother taught him to pray, and he developed a testimony while he was very young. He said, “My mother had taught me to pray and to thank Heavenly Father for all the things that I enjoyed. I often thanked Him for the beauty of the earth and for the wonderful times that I had at the ranch and by the river and with the Scouts. I also learned to ask Him for the things that I wanted or needed.”

When he was eight years old, he wanted to be baptized. His nonmember father felt that Howard should be older before he joined any church. Though he knew Heavenly Father wanted him to be a member of the Church, he also knew it was important to do what his father wanted him to do. He honored his father by waiting for his permission. Five months after his twelfth birthday, Howard was baptized.

When he was a teenager, the Saints in Boise, Idaho, met with Church officials to talk about building a new tabernacle. The Boise members were asked to donate money to build the tabernacle, and Howard was the first to raise his hand. He pledged twenty-five dollars—a lot of money for a teenager in those days—as his offering. “I worked and saved until I was able to pay my commitment in full,” he said.

Instructions: The pictures of President Hunter on page 43 show some of the things that he did to be obedient. Fill in the missing word(s) under each picture. On separate sheets of paper, draw pictures of ways that you are obedient. Label and color the pictures

Sharing Time Ideas

1. Thread a long piece of yarn or string through a button or a ring, and tie the ends together. Have the children stand in a circle and pass the button along the string from person to person. As each child receives the button, he or she names a way to be obedient at home, school, neighborhood, or church.

2. Make eight to ten large footprints out of paper. Label one “Earth” and another “Eternal Life,” and place them far apart from each other in the room. Ask the children to name some things we can do so that we may gain eternal life—love others, keep the Word of Wisdom, etc. As each answer is given, write it on a footprint and place it in a path on the floor or around the wall between the “Earth” and “Eternal Life” footprints. Discuss how we can obey each commandment. Use all the footprints.

3. For each class, prepare a set of nine cards with a letter from o-b-e-d-i-e-n-c-e written on each. Have each class work together to discover what the letters spell, then, using the letter on the card to begin each response, write on each card ways they can be obedient (e.g., O—obey my parents, obey traffic signs; B—be at church on time, be kind to my brothers and sisters). Share all ideas with the whole group.

4. Make a calendar for each child. Have the older children fill in the name of the month and the days of the week (teachers may do this for younger children). Let each child decorate his or her own calendar, and encourage all to hang them in their homes. Each evening they can write or draw on the calendar what they did to be obedient (e.g., “I stopped at the stop sign,” “I said my prayers,” “I ate a healthy breakfast”). Have them bring the completed calendars to Primary on the final Sunday of the month and share them.

5. Invite the children to name songs that help them learn about obedience. Sing the songs and discuss what rule(s) is (are) taught in each song. Include “I Thank Thee, Dear Father,” “Baptism,” “Quickly I’ll Obey,” (Children’s Songbook, pp. 7, 100, and 197, respectively).

6. Have the children draw a picture illustrating the following terms to add to their “My Articles of Faith Book” (see Sharing Time, Jan. 1995, p. 36): obedience—when we are willing to make the right choice, law—a rule that requires us to be obedient.

Have you ever been asked to pray in front of other people and when you closed your eyes, you couldn’t remember what you wanted to say? If you can see pictures in your mind, they can help you to think of the words that you want to say.

After we begin a prayer by addressing our Father in Heaven, we thank Him for the things we have. Think of all the blessings you have—home, family, friends, the Church, beauties of the earth, and so on. Try to picture in your mind each of these things. When you pray, express gratitude to Heavenly Father for several of them.

Now think of what you would like help with, or that others might need help with. When you pray, ask for help with what is important to you. If you are praying for someone you know, picture him in your mind as you pray, and it will be easier to ask for a blessing for him.

Here is something you can do to help you have pictures in your mind, to help you remember things to say when you pray.

The sacrament is a blessing, and we can show our gratitude for it by being reverent as the sacrament is being prepared and passed. Being reverent during the sacrament includes thinking about Jesus and what He taught us. By taking the sacrament, we show that we are willing to keep the commandments and always remember Him.

Jesus Christ has revealed the ordinance of the sacrament on several different occasions. Cut out scripture references and pictures. Study the scriptures listed, then put each one with the picture that it tells about. Color the pictures and put them in the order in which you think they happened. At your next family home evening, use the pictures and scriptures to tell about the sacrament.

Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets (Matt. 7:12).

A fable is a story meant to teach a moral lesson. The characters are often animals. And although the story could not have happened, the lesson is valuable. “The New Animal” is a fable with a very important lesson.

Instructions

1. Mount animal parts on heavy paper, then color and cut out.

2. While telling story, put parts together as each animal discovers how he is like Zelmgid.

3. Tell what you think moral of story is.

The New Animal

By Diane Bohn

A new animal was coming to live in the zoo, and the other animals were excited. One morning a big truck backed up to an empty cage, and out stepped the new animal. The zookeeper hung a sign outside the cage that said “ZELMGID.”

The other animals stared in amazement. The zelmgid did not look like any animal that they had ever seen. He had a long neck and a long tail, and when he opened his mouth, he barked. One by one the other animals turned away from the cage. Because the zelmgid was so different, they were not sure how to treat him.

The zelmgid was very lonely. The animals ignored him, so he had no one to talk to. He was so sad that he didn’t eat. The zookeeper began to worry. People stopped visiting the zoo because the new animal was sad and the other animals hid in the backs of their cages.

One day the elephant heard the zelmgid barking to himself. “The zelmgid does have a good trunk,” he told the giraffe. “It’s not as long as mine, but it’s really quite nice.”

The giraffe stretched her neck to take a closer look. “Look at his strong neck. He can reach as high as I can.”

The lion was looking quietly at the new animal’s mane. “My goodness! He has an excellent mane—almost as thick as mine.”

Just then the zebra trotted by the cage. “His coat has a very nice pattern,” she said.

“And his horns are curved just right,” the ibex said, “just like mine.”

When the monkey came swinging from the trees, he said, “Look at that handsome tail. I wonder if the zelmgid would like to play tag?”

Finally the duck waddled by the cage. “What fine feet you have. You probably can swim faster than I can,” she said to him.

The zelmgid stopped crying and thanked the duck for the compliment. Soon all the animals were talking together. They felt much happier. Even though the zelmgid looked different, the other animals had all found something about the new animal that they liked.

Sharing Time Ideas

1. Make copies of zelmgid parts for each child to color and cut out. Or put together for younger children, then make copies for them to color.

2. As you tell story, have children hold enlarged pictures of other animals. Invite child to arrange them so that first letter of each animal represented spells zelmgid.

3. Carefully discuss differences with involvement directions, such as: “All children with brown eyes raise their hands.” “Those with freckles stand.” “Those who can whistle, whistle.” Be sensitive to situations in class in which you can give support to children. Lead to conclusion that we can find something that we like about everybody.

4. Discuss Golden Rule (Matt. 7:12). Who taught us this? Challenge children to apply Golden Rule during week and report their experiences.